The following U.S. Patents and patent application are incorporated herein by reference in entirety:
U.S. Pat. No. 6,942,530 discloses an engine control strategy for a marine propulsion system that selects a desired idle speed for use during a shift event based on boat speed and engine temperature. In order to change the engine operating speed to the desired idle speed during the shift event, ignition timing is altered and the status of an idle air control valve is changed. These changes to the ignition timing and the idle air control valve are made in order to achieve the desired engine idle speed during the shift event. The idle speed during the shift event is selected so that the impact shock and resulting noise of the shift event can be decreased without causing the engine to stall.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,322,404 discloses a Hall effect rotational position sensor mounted on a pivotable member of a marine propulsion system and a rotatable portion of the rotational position sensor attached to a drive structure of the marine propulsion system. Relative movement between the pivotable member, such as a gimbal ring, and the drive structure, such as the outboard drive portion of the marine propulsion system, cause relative movement between the rotatable and stationary portions of the rotational position sensor. As a result, signals can be provided which are representative of the angular position between the drive structure and the pivotable member.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,273,771 discloses a control system for a marine vessel that incorporates a marine propulsion system that can be attached to a marine vessel and connected in signal communication with a serial communication bus and a controller. A plurality of input devices and output devices are also connected in signal communication with the communication bus. A bus access manager, such as a CAN Kingdom network, is connected in signal communication with the controller to regulate the incorporation of additional devices to the plurality of devices in signal communication with the bus. The controller is connected in signal communication with each of the plurality of devices on the communication bus. The input and output devices can each transmit messages to the serial communication bus for receipt by other devices.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,893,800 discloses a power unit mount that includes a housing in which first and second electrode bodies are suspended and which is filled with a fluid which exhibits a change in viscosity when a voltage is applied there across. The control of the voltage application is determined by a control circuit which is operatively connected to a plurality of sensors which include an engine speed sensor, a road wheel speed sensor, a relative displacement sensor and an absolute displacement sensor. A variant includes a solenoid powered vibration generator which can be energized under predetermined conditions in a manner to improve vibration attenuation.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,267,068 discloses a marine vessel that is maneuvered by independently rotating first and second marine propulsion devices about their respective steering axes in response to commands received from a manually operable control device, such as a joystick. The marine propulsion devices are aligned with their thrust vectors intersecting at a point on a center line of the marine vessel and, when no rotational movement is commanded, at the center of gravity of the marine vessel. Internal combustion engines are provided to drive the marine propulsion devices. The steering axes of the two marine propulsion devices are generally vertical and parallel to each other. The two steering axes extend through a bottom surface of the hull of the marine vessel.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,398,742 discloses a steering assist system that provides differential thrusts by two or more marine propulsion devices in order to create a more effective turning moment on a marine vessel. The differential thrusts can be selected as a function of the magnitude of turn commanded by an operator of the marine vessel and, in addition, as a function of the speed of the marine vessel at the time when the turning command is received.